Capitol Connection Newsletter

Press Release

House Votes to Reduce Government Spending by $100 Billion:

House Republicans continued to fulfill their Pledge to America this week by passing a historic measure to reduce government spending by over $100 billion for the remainder of the current fiscal year. In a dramatic reversal from the Democrat-led 111th Congress, the new House Majority allowed for an extensive debate on the resolution to fund the government through the remainder of FY 2011. At a time when our nation is borrowing 42 cents on the dollar to pay for the record high spending binge of the last two years, Congressman Miller firmly believes that the government must learn to live within its means, as hard-working American families must do. As Congress prepares to consider funding levels and priorities for Fiscal Year 2012, Congressman Miller looks forward to working with his colleagues to address the numerous economic challenges facing our nation.

Doubling Down on Failed "Stimulus' Law, President Presents Fiscally Irresponsible Budget:

Thursday marked the second anniversary of the failed Democrat "stimulus" law. Despite rosy predictions that passage of the $814 billion package would save or create millions of new jobs, over 2.5 million jobs have been lost since its enactment. While the law failed to sufficiently spur private sector job creation, the law's billions of dollars in new federal spending did significantly contribute to the rapid rise of the national debt from $10.79 billion in February 2009 to over $14 trillion today. The failure of the "stimulus" shows that we cannot continue to spend our way to job creation and economic prosperity. Unfortunately, President Obama this week proposed a budget for Fiscal Year 2012 that will double the national debt in five years and triple it over the next decade. To get our economy back on track, Congressman Miller will continue to support efforts to end the federal spending spree, reduce the national debt, and relieve the burden of excessive and unnecessary regulations on our nation's job creators.

House Approves Temporary Extension of PATRIOT Act Provisions:

Since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, our country has been engaged in a war against a new kind of enemy. The USA PATRIOT Act was enacted to strengthen our nation's ability to detect and eliminate terrorist threats. Currently, three important provisions of the PATRIOT Act that address the government's ability to collect intelligence information are set to expire at the end of the month. To ensure law enforcement continues to have access to these important intelligence-gathering tools, the House on Thursday passed a 90-day extension of these provisions. Specifically, these provisions broaden the type of records the government may access as part of a national security investigation; permit "roving" wiretaps on multiple communications devices for a single target, and allow the government to subject non-citizen individuals in the United States suspected of international terrorism to the same type of surveillance currently conducted on foreign agents or members of international terrorist groups. Congressman Miller supported the temporary extension of these provisions to give Congress time to review their effectiveness in thwarting terrorist threats and their impact on civil liberties. He will continue to work in Congress to protect our nation from those who would do us harm while safeguarding our cherished rights.

Congress Hears Suggestions from Orange County Transportation Leaders:

With scarce resources on the federal, state, and local level for transportation projects, Congress is exploring ways to do more with less to ensure the dollars that are invested are used wisely. This week, Congressman Miller, a senior member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, participated in a hearing on ideas to streamline the environmental review process for transportation projects. Specifically, the Committee heard the testimony from representatives of the Orange Country Transportation Authority and the Transportation Corridor Agency. Each discussed their past experiences with the lengthy review process and offered solutions to make the process work better without compromising the integrity of the environment. For example, the State of California participated in the Surface Transportation Project Delivery Pilot Program which was authored by Congressman Miller. This program allows the federal government to delegate its responsibilities for the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) to the state. Through this delegation pilot program, California has been able to shave approximately 17 months off of the approval process for a standard transportation project. As Congress continues to reach out to our communities on ways to make the federal process more efficient, Congressman Miller will work hard to see that our economy and our infrastructure can grow and adapt to our recovering economy.

SBA Disaster Loan Outreach Center Open in 42nd District:

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is still providing disaster loans for homeowners, renters and businesses who have sustained damage as a result of recent flooding and weather conditions from the December 17, 2010 through January 4, 2011 severe winter storms. Today, the SBA District Director of the Santa Ana Office, announced that an additional Disaster Loan Outreach Center (DLOC) will open in Orange County. Located in the Silverado Community Center, Bldg. A at 27641 Silverado Canyon Rd., Silverado, CA 92676, this center will be in addition to ones located in Laguna Beach, Hesperia, Highland, San Diego, and Grover Beach, CA. to assist affected constituents seeking disaster assistance. For more information, please contact the SBA Customer Service Center at (800) 659-2955. Location details may also be found by contacting Congressman Gary Miller's Brea district office at (714) 257-1142.

Source